The present invention relates to a shaking apparatus for agitating a specimen such as blood contained in a sealed vessel, and withdrawing the content under suction. More particularly, the present invention relates to an apparatus for shaking one or more sealed vessels mounted thereon so as to agitate the content and withdraw it under suction without opening the vessel.
For agitating a the specimen contained in a sealed vessel and withdrawing it various apparatus and methods are known in the art and are widely used, for example:
(a) A rotary vessel is provided eccentrically of the shaft of a driving motor, and the vessel is caused to oscillate, thereby mixing the liquids contained therein. After the mixing is finished, a nozzle or needle is inserted through the plug of the vessel, thereby allowing the mixture to be withdrawn through the needle. (Japanese Utility Model Unexamined publication No. 59-142752)
(b) A specially shaped carrier like a ferriswheel is provided on which several vessels are radially arranged. By rotating the carrier, the liquids contained in the individual vessels are mixed. After the mixing is finished, a nozzle or needle is inserted through the plug of each vessel, thereby allowing the mixture to be withdrawn through the needle. (U.S. Pat. No. 4,475,411)
(c) An apparatus having no agitator but effecting the withdrawal of the content is provided. In this apparatus, the vessels are held in recesses of a cradle (rack), and a double-walled needle is inserted through the plug of each vessel so as to withdraw the liquids. (Japanese Patent Unexamined Publication No. 58-76765).
The known apparatus and methods mentioned above have the following disadvantages:
The apparatus referred to in (a) is suitable for agitating the liquids when they are in small quantities, but when in large quantities the liquid tends to be insufficiently agitated.
The ferris-wheel like carrier in (b) requires a large quantity of liquid to be withdrawn because of its relatively long path from the sampling nozzle to the analyzing unit. To withdraw the large quantity of liquid, the pressure must be accordingly large, which endangers the plug of the vessel. Another disadvantage is that only a limited number of vessels can be mounted on the carrier.
The apparatus referred to in (c) must be equipped with an extra agitator, or else the vessel must be shaken by hand to agitate the content. The rack has recesses for securing the vessels therein. The shapes of the recesses are predetermined, which means that the vessels mounted on the rack must have a shape corresponding to the particular shape of the recess. In addition, it is difficult to stab a double-walled needle in the plug of the vessel, and furthermore, the complicated structure of the apparatus leads to a high production cost.
An object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus which solves the problems pointed out with respect to the known shaking apparatus discussed above. Thus an object of the present invention is to provide a shaking apparatus capable of performing twofold functions, specifically, the mixing of a specimen confined in a sealed vessel, and the withdrawing of the mixture under suction: The invention thereby eliminates the necessity of opening the sealed vessel.
This object is achieved by providing a shaking apparatus for agitating and withdrawing a liquid specimen in which the liquid specimen is disposed in at least one sealed vessel having a plug on one end. The apparatus includes vessel holding elements. The vessel holding elements are movable in a forward direction, in a backward direction, in an upward direction and in a backward direction. First driving elements move the vessel holding elements in the forward direction and the backward direction. Second holding elements move the vessel holding elements in the upward direction and the downward direction. Third driving elements reciprocally rotate the vessel holding elements in a predetermined angular range. Vessel tilting means are provided for tilting the vessel such that the plug faces toward the downward direction. Specimen withdrawing elements are provided which include two needles adapted to be stabbed through the plug of the vessel. One of the needles allows air to pass into the vessel and the other needle allows a liquid specimen to pass out of the vessel. A needle cleansing tank is provided for cleaning the needles. The needle cleansing tank includes apertures through which the needles are inserted for cleansing.
Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description, when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings which show, for the purpose of illustration only, one embodiment in accordance with the present invention.